Major Electronic Genres and Best Artists/Tracks to Study

[KBSoundSmith]

Hey folks,

Would you be able to point me toward some music to study?

I've been using electronic sounds in my music, but it's mainly been more for a classical/avant-garde/atmospheric sound. But recently, I've become more interested in dance music, pop music, etc and would love a little guidance.

I'd like to have some artists and tracks to study/emulate so I can build up my skills and begin composing in new styles.

For example, I've heard the terms dub, house, techno, dubstep, etc. But I don't know the music well enough to know what distinguishes one genre from another, what the major genres are, or how those genres have changed over time.

I also don't know who the key artists are from the past, what tracks or albums they're known for, and who key artists are today.

If you'd be able to point me in the right directions, I'd appreciate it.

[Chapelle]

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[Synapse2k]

Just look up Brian Eno and Robert Rich for true age music.

[chaosWyrM]

http://techno.org/electronic-music-guide/

[mhog]

http://techno.org/electronic-music-guide/

[KBSoundSmith]

http://techno.org/electronic-music-guide/

Sometimes, the Internet still manages to surprise me.

Thanks, looks like an awesome resource. Time to burn the midnight oil...

[chaosWyrM]

http://techno.org/electronic-music-guide/

Sometimes, the Internet still manages to surprise me.

Thanks, looks like an awesome resource. Time to burn the midnight oil...

hehe...well....keep in mind i put a winky face in there. that site, while a decent resource, isnt always very accurate in the examples they use...or the descriptions, which are often tongue in cheek...or in fact the genres themselves.

for instance..."dark trance" as he calls it isnt a thing...darkpsy IS but its missing from the list entirely.

i will say though that the description for "dark trance" is one of my favorites as it speaks the truth:

Trance crackers might be aghast at the thought that a blissful genre like trance could actually be.....*gulp*.....DARK....but in truth dark, evil-sounding trance was around before all the flighty, angelic crud. Trance, in its very basic form, is very cold and unfeeling Staccato synthlines, twitchy pulses, the subservience to technology. It's no wonder the underground rivetheads picked up and understood this sound before the mainstream maaaah-sive club patrons did <- i love that line

also...psytekk....not a kind of trance (he did put "aka minimal" in there), but...the description is hysterical...though far more appropriate for techtrance...which isnt even on the list...but examples of techtrance are included in psytekk (aka minimal)...though minimal and techtrance are really nothing alike.

hehe...it gets a bit confusing.

[Chemik]

I know this sounds uber nerdy but I've gotten enormous mileage out of going into youtube and typing, best dubstep of 2015 or 2016, or top kpop bands of 2016. Naturally all of the elitists come out and slam whatever people post but themes start to emerge and off I go hunting down the different rabbit trails.

If I'm reading your thought correctly, you are looking at taking a stab at more traditional big electro song-writing. A very cool endeavor. Once you stop judging everyone and just let yourself appreciate the work some of these producers put into things, you get humbled really quickly.

For electro pop, I would suggest looking out for the big name production groups that typically write for other artists. Like LDN Noise. They wrote the music for the most recent hit of mega kpop artist EXO but have an amazing resume of bands they write for.


DJ Snake is the big name most people know. Known for big hooks, isolation and space yet powerful songs. You want to study a master who sells, study him.

[thecontrolcentre]

Good luck. You've only got 50 odd years to catch up on.

[DJ Warmonger]

The plot thickens when you learn that a whole lot of top artists are in fact ghost-produced

http://www.edmghostproducer.com/maarten ... ind-dvbbs/

[KBSoundSmith]

I know this sounds uber nerdy but I've gotten enormous mileage out of going into youtube and typing, best dubstep of 2015 or 2016, or top kpop bands of 2016. Naturally all of the elitists come out and slam whatever people post but themes start to emerge and off I go hunting down the different rabbit trails.

Sounds like something to try. I guess starting broad and narrowing is a good way to research, in my case.

If I'm reading your thought correctly, you are looking at taking a stab at more traditional big electro song-writing. A very cool endeavor. Once you stop judging everyone and just let yourself appreciate the work some of these producers put into things, you get humbled really quickly.

That's basically the idea.

Even though there's a lot of junk music out there, there's a lot of good stuff too -- doesn't matter the genre...both gems and sh** everywhere. But I've never really tried popular music styles, and I thought it would be fun (and more culturally relevant...) to try it.

It's odd, I've been using synthesizers for years now, but I've never attempted to make a dance track

Drums, trendy sounds, genre-specific conventions...I have a lot to study up on. But it should be fun.

[KBSoundSmith]

Good luck. You've only got 50 odd years to catch up on.

Yeah, I'm going to have to do this with broad strokes. I guess my musical influences to date have been a bit...

[KBSoundSmith]

The plot thickens when you learn that a whole lot of top artists are in fact ghost-produced

http://www.edmghostproducer.com/maarten ... ind-dvbbs/

Maybe I'm just jaded, but...that doesn't really surprise me.

[ere2learn]

Off topic - That's the least of dvbbs worries at the moment....

On topic - Here's a guide to Detroit Techno

http://www.dummymag.com/features/the-du ... first-wave

http://www.dummymag.com/features/dummy- ... resent-day


Also this might help you with the genre question

http://thedancemusicguide.com/